Holding game basic strategy

One of the most typical backgammon situations is when one ore both players enter a holding game. It is a situation where a player has one ore two anchors or outer field points on the opposing half of the board and the rest of their checkers is on their own half of the board. There are several holding game strategies for various types of holding games, but in it’s simplest form a holding game is only about two things: waiting to hit a shot or waiting to run with a double.

We dive into the complexities of different holding game strategies in the Holding game advanced strategy article, this article will discuss only the holding game basics:
- learn to recognize a holding game
- moving the right checkers

Recognize a holding game

In order for you to be able to correctly adapt your game to the prevailing game situation you need to recognize what a holding game is. The signs of a holding game is when you and/or your opponent

• has one or two anchors OR outfield points
• on the opposing half of the board
• the anchor is NOT behind a prime of four checkers or more AND
• all the rest of the checkers are on the player’s own side of the board

Some experts maintain that a holding game also needs to involve a high anchor, but there is some debate around the topic. Check out for example Backgammon Galore holding game thread. It is very important to note,though, that if the anchor is behind a four-prime or longer, the game is NOT a holding game any more but it has become a priming game.

A very typical holding game situation is illustrated in Picture 1.

In the holding game situation above White hasn’t managed to clear his mid-point but at least it’s blocking the most likely escape route for Black. Also, he has a strong 20-point. Black, on the other hand has only two checkers to move to his side of the board but he can easily get in trouble when he moves his checkers on the 18-point.

For the sake of clarity, another holding game situation can be seen in Picture 2. In Picture 2. Black is a clear favorite in the race and he also has built a 5-prime with a very good chance for a 6-prime on the next one or two rounds. However, he will soon need to move his two checkers before the advantage is gone - White is also soon about to make his fifth home board point, making it very risky for the Black to move.

Which checkers should you move?

In a holding game your goal is to wait for the right moment to move your outfield point checkers. This you can do if you are going to hit a shot (preferrably you don’t have home board blots) or if you have rolled a double and you can safely move. The basic moves are

• doubles
• hitting
• home board building

Doubles

You don’t want to leave a shot in a holding game especially if your opponent has a strong home board. So, in a holding game move your anchor with a double. In Picture 1. Black’s best rolls would be 5-5, 4-4, 3-3 and 2-2 in that order. The only correct move for Black would be to move the checkers from his 18-point.

White would also be happy with a large double; 6-6 would be the best but he would be happy with 5-5 and 4-4 as well.

The general rule is that with a double you move the anchor first if you can.

Hitting

Depending on the holding game situation you might want to have a priority on hitting or on building the home board given the possibilities. Hitting can be a very effective way of clearing an anchor especially if you have a strong home board.

In Picture 2. White’s priority as a clear underdog is to hit and hope to keep Black on the bar in order to either hit the second time or bear in his checkers and making more home board points.

However, in Picture 1. White shouldn’t hit quite yet but focus on building his home board and hope to hit with a only a little later.

Home board building

A strong home board is very important for increasing your chances for a victory in a holding game. It is more likely that you will be able to hit a shot than to roll a lucky large double and bear in your mean before your opponent does. Therefore you should strive for building your home board whenever you can so that when the chance arises to hit you can do it safely.

Holding game advanced strategies

There are a few different typical holding game situations and each requiry different strategies: mid-point vs. bar-point, mid-point vs. anchor, high and low anchors. Read our Holding game advanced strategy article where discuss those strategies.